julian barnes

English authors Martin Amis, Ian McEwan, and Julian Barnes, all born in the 1940s, present us with contemporary perspectives of the world through writing styles that originate in the classic literary tradition, only to explode into unsettling resolutions that mirror the contemporary human experience. With elegant prose, they weave history and personal relations into thought-provoking narratives. In Time’s Arrow, Martin Amis does an exercise of history “revision” by playing with the concept of time, and thus forcing the reader to view a historical character from an impossible perspective. In doing so, Amis confronts us with a disconcerting view of evil. Ian McEwan’s Atonement, which has been adapted for the big screen as several of his novels, explores the complications of childhood, love, class and responsibility. It’s…